Information Technology

In the last few decades, the EU has successfully deregulated the market for telecommunications and the internet. The "Digital Agenda for Europe" and the regulation of roaming prices and network neutrality indicate the formative role which the EU intends to play in the future. cep actively monitors the substantive regulation of the IT markets and efforts to further Europeanise regulatory competence.

Data Transfers to Third Countries (Communication)

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The EU Commission wants to make the transmission of personal data to non-EU countries easier in order to promote mutual trade and effectively combat international crime.

The EU Commission wants to further harmonise the rules on the use of radio spectrum. In cep’s view, the long minimum duration of 25 years for time-limited harmonised radio spectrum licences, envisaged by the Commission, should be abolished because, in the technologically fast moving telecommunications sector, it may result in the inefficient distribution of licences.

The EU - Commission wants a Regulation to protect the confidentiality of electronic communications and related end-user data more effectively and at the same time ensure the freedom of movement of such data. In cep’s view, the envisaged coherence with the General Data Protection Regulation has not been achieved. This results in legal uncertainty which weakens the EU as a location for the data economy.

The EU-Commission wants to revise the universal service rules in order to enable all EU citizens to have a broadband connection at an “affordable price”. In cep’s view, however, an obligation for universal service providers, to offer social tariffs below market prices in order to give low-income citizens a broadband connection, would be in breach of the freedom to conduct a business.

According to the Commission, there are considerable weaknesses in the existing apparatus for supervising the telecommunications sector which consists of the national regulatory authorities (NRAs), other national authorities, the Commission, the Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC) and the BEREC Office. It therefore wants to restructure this apparatus.

New types of telecommunications services and end-user rights (Directive)

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The EU Commission wants to create a level playing field for providers of conventional and new types of electronic communications services (OTT services) and largely harmonise end-user rights. In cep's view, there is however no justification for the many proposed exceptions for number-independent interpersonal communications services in the area of end-user rights.

The EU Commission wants to speed up the deployment of fast telecommunications networks. An access regulation for telecoms network operators with a dominant market position which gives more consideration to competition at retail level will contribute to this. cep welcomes this step but criticises the preferential regulatory treatment given to "very high-capacity networks".

The Commission wants to extend the regulation of telecoms network operators independently of market power in order to speed up the deployment of very high capacity networks. Upper limits on termination charges will indirectly bring down the price of calls.

ICT Standardisation Priorities for the Digital Single Market (Communication)

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The Commission wants to press ahead with the standardisation of information and communications technology (ICT). It is focussing, in this regard, on the "priorities" of cloud computing, the internet of things, 5G communications, cybersecurity and data technologies. In cep's view, setting priorities is appropriate.

The EU Commission wants to push ahead with the digital transformation of public administrations. In cep's view, cross-border eGovernment services facilitate the mobility of citizens and cross-border business operations. The once-only collection of data from companies and citizens increases the efficiency of public administrations.

In view of the changing media landscape, the Commission wants to revise the rules on the provision of audiovisual media services and video-sharing platforms. In this regard, it proposes the harmonisation of competition rules applicable to television programmes and video-on-demand services. In cep's view, this is appropriate because both media services are in competition with one another.

In addition to online sales of goods, the EU Commission also wants to boost the market for digital content and ensure that it can also be offered and acquired across borders. With the proposed Directive, it wants to fully harmonise the guarantee rights and other consumer rights in contracts relating to the supply of digital content and thereby remove legal uncertainty and promote sales of digital content.

The Commission wants to create a European Open Science Cloud, strengthen data infrastructure and invest in quantum technologies. A European Cloud, in cep's view, contributes to the efficiency and quality of research. Success, however, depends on information actually being put in the Cloud.

The European Commission wants to speed up the digitisation of European industry and calls, inter alia, for an EU-wide network of "Digital Innovation Hubs". These will help small and medium-sized enterprises, in particular, to develop digital innovations more easily. In cep's view, public funds should not be channelled into such "Hubs".

Online traders avoid offering their goods across borders for reasons of cost; consumers are discouraged from online purchases abroad due to uncertainty about their rights. The EU Commission wants to change this by way of the proposed Directive. With full harmonisation of the law on legal guarantees for online sales of goods, it wants to remove legal uncertainty in crossborder online trade and thereby encourage such trade.

EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has declared that the completion of a Digital Single Market is one of the priorities of his period of office. With the Digital Single Market Strategy, the Commission wants to make the EU the leader of the digital economy. A central pillar of this strategy is the building of a "data economy" (Big Data, cloud services, Internet of Things).

In its Strategy for a Digital Single Market, the Commission lays down numerous measures to strengthen the European digital economy. This cepPolicyBrief deals with the second pillar of the Strategy (Digital networks and services). It deals, inter alia, with the reform of telecommunications regulations, the examination of the rules on audiovisual media services, online platforms, and with the rules on illegal content on the Internet.

The European Commission will harmonise the contractual rights of both parties in online purchasing EU wide. In addition, it will submit legislative proposals to prevent "unjustified geo-blocking". Geo-blocking is a technical measure used by online traders to restrict access to cross-border online purchasing by users in a specific geographical location.

The EU Commission wants to promote investment in NGA networks and maintain effective competition on the broadband market. It wants to do this by stricter non-discrimination obligations, greater clarity as to when obligations on price control for NGA networks should be removed and by imposing a standard costing methodology.

The EU Commission proposes an extensive overhaul of the digital single market rules. Part 2 of the cepPolicyBrief deals with the notification requirement for telecomms providers, radio frequencies and virtual broadband access.

Part 1 of the cepPolicyBrief concerns net neutrality and the full harmonisation of the rights of end-users. The change to the Roaming Regulation and cross-border fixed-network connections within the EU will be considered in Part 3.

The EU Commission proposes an extensive overhaul of the digital single market rules. Part 1 of the cepPolicyBrief concerns net neutrality and the full harmonisation of the rights of end-users. Part 2 deals with the notification requirement for telecomms providers, radio frequencies and virtual broadband access. The change to the Roaming Regulation and cross-border fixed-network connections within the EU will be considered in Part 3.

The Directive aims to ensure a minimum level of network and information security. The Commission wants to impose technical requirements and reporting obligations on certain market operators and public authorities. The Member States are to adopt strategies for network and information security.

The Commission wishes to reform the EU data protection law fundamentally with the General Data Protection Regulation. It is mainly aimed at an EU-wide full harmonisation of the data protection standard while taking account of the latest technical challenges of the internet age. It is to replace the existing Data Protection Directive (95/46/EC).

The Commission wishes to enhance trust in electronic transactions in the internal market. To this end, it proposes a Regulation designed to extend the provisions of the existing Electronic Signature Directive (1999/93/EC) and to complement electronic identification and additional trust services.

The Regulation of mobile termination rates has become the arena of a power struggle between the EU-Commission and some Member States. The Commission insists that national regulators should apply the “pure-LRIC”-costing model.

The Commission is initiating a consultation with the aim to (at first) adopt a non-binding recommendation. The recommendation is to serve as guidance to national regulatory authorities for fixing access prices during the transition phase between copper networks and fibre glass networks. This approach is to create incentives for investments in ultra-fast NGA networks.

The Commission proposes new price limits for calls, SMS and data communications services within a foreign EU Member State. These will be gradually reduced until 2014. Service providers are to receive access to networks of mobile network operators in other EU states to offer mobile communications services. Mobile users of roaming services may switch from their roaming provider to an alternative provider “at any moment”.

The Data Retention Directive stipulates that providers of telecommunications, mobile and internet services are obliged to retain traffic and location data of users. The purpose of this is the investigation, detection and prosecution of “serious crime”. In its Report, the Commission evaluates the Member States’ application of the Data Retention Directive, its benefit and impact.

The “Digital Agenda” designates “key actions” which will facilitate “smarter work” and the establishment of the Digital Single Market. It aims at a sustainable economic and social use of the Digital Single Market, rooted in fast internet connections for EU-wide services.

The Commission names as “key performance targets” for 2015, amongst other things, that 50% of the population buy online, the removal of tariff differences between telephone calls at home and abroad (“roaming”) and an average price per minute of 13 cents (including roaming).

The Commission and many Member States have announced to support the deployment of boradband networks as part of their economic recovery packages. This includes not only traditional broadband networks but also new "NGA Networks". However, subsidies (State aid) are subject to certain conditions which the Commission clarifies in its latest Guidelines.

The rapid development of the internet creates new services and applications. Not only the EU Commission, but also many national politicians call for "broadband access for all" and a quick expansion of high-speed networks in urban areas. The growing use of smart radio tags (RFID technology) storing and transmitting data, enables new applications on the one hand, but, at the same time, raises critical issues as to data protetion on the other hand.

The public sector possesses extensive information such as satellite images, judicial decisions or statistics ("Public Sector Information" - PSI), all of which can serve as raw material for products and services offered by private providers such as navigation systems, weather forecasts or financial services. The Directive 2003/98/EC (“PSI Directive“) is to remove barriers to the private use (“re-use”) of PSI in the internal market. The aim of the Communication is to review the impact thus far of the PSI Directive and to show new ways to tap the full economic potential in re-using PSI.